Ave Maria: Meaning and Definition of

A•ve Ma•ri•a

Pronunciation: (ä'vā mu-rē'u), [key]
  1. (italics.) the first two words of the Latin version of a prayer in the Roman Catholic Church, based on the salutation of the angel Gabriel to the Virgin Mary and the words of Elizabeth to her.
  2. a recitation of this prayer.
  3. the bead or beads on a rosary used to count off each prayer as spoken.
Random House Unabridged Dictionary, Copyright © 1997, by Random House, Inc., on Infoplease.